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Blocking smoothened cholesterylation: A strategy for overcoming drug resistance in cancer Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In this issue of Cell Chemical Biology, Liu et al.1 report the identification of Q29, a synthetic diterpenoid that blocks covalent cholesterol modification of smoothened (SMO) and inhibits hedgehog signaling. Q29 is capable of suppressing tumor cell growth, both in vitro and in vivo, and overcoming resistance to SMO inhibitors.
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STX-bpc: “Brightening” the path to neuronal inhibition Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In this issue of Cell Chemical Biology, Elleman et al.1 introduce a transformative chemical approach to control neuronal activity with high spatial and temporal resolution. The authors present STX-bpc, a potent neurotoxin that naturally inhibits voltage-gated sodium channels (NaVs), complementing available optogenetic methods for manipulating neuronal activity, cellular communication, and behavior
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A new light on PLCβ! Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In this issue of Cell Chemical Biology, Kim et al.1 present a novel optogenetic tool, opto-PLCβ, to control PLCβ signaling optically. In addition to eliciting PIP2 hydrolysis and downstream signaling in cells, opto-PLCβ also enabled probing the impact of PLCβ signaling on amygdala synaptic plasticity and fear learning in mice.
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CBLs downregulation foretells T cell ubiquitination leading to autoimmunity Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In a study published in the July issue of Immunity, Li et al.1 demonstrate that expression of the E3 ubiquitin ligases CBL and CBL-B is downregulated in Tfh cells in SLE with Tfh cell expansion and autoimmunity. This leads to reduced ubiquitination of the T cell costimulator ICOS which regulates proteostasis of the Tfh cell transcription factor BCL6 via chaperone-mediated autophagy.
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Rescuing T cells from stiff tumors Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In a recent issue of Cell, Zhang et al.1 demonstrate that mechanical features of a solid tumor can drive T cells into dysfunctionality and identify pathways that revert this “exhausted” state.
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Therapeutic potential of inhibiting the PI3Kγ complex for leukemia Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
In their recent paper published in Nature, Luo et al.1 investigate the cancer-cell-intrinsic roles of the PI3Kγ complex in leukemia. Their findings pinpoint PI3Kγ inhibition as a possible novel treatment avenue for a subset of acute leukemias.
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Development of covalent chemogenetic K2P channel activators Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-18
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Inter-kingdom electromechanical communication Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-19 Joshua T. Atkinson
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Machine learning in preclinical drug discovery Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-19 Denise B. Catacutan, Jeremie Alexander, Autumn Arnold, Jonathan M. Stokes
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Lysine l-lactylation is the dominant lactylation isomer induced by glycolysis Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-19 Di Zhang, Jinjun Gao, Zhijun Zhu, Qianying Mao, Zhiqiang Xu, Pankaj K. Singh, Cornelius C. Rimayi, Carlos Moreno-Yruela, Shuling Xu, Gongyu Li, Yi-Cheng Sin, Yue Chen, Christian A. Olsen, Nathaniel W. Snyder, Lunzhi Dai, Lingjun Li, Yingming Zhao
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Biotech news from around the world Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
AstraZeneca and Pfizer will invest almost $1 billion in manufacturing in France. Pfizer will invest $539 million to build R&D capabilities, and AstraZeneca will spend $388 million to upgrade its Dunkirk site. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations awards BioNTech $145 million to build a network in Africa for producing mRNA-based vaccines for malaria, mpox, tuberculosis and other diseases
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Bezos backs taste-good lab proteins Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
Jeff Bezos is bankrolling two new centers to research and develop sustainable proteins that taste good and can be produced in the lab. The Amazon founder is donating $60 million from the Bezos Earth Fund to research, create and commercialize new dietary proteins that are environmentally friendly and affordable. The Bezos Centers for Sustainable Protein at Imperial College London and North Carolina
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Citizen chickpeas Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
The European Union’s biggest citizen science prize for an initiative with the most impact in advancing a sustainable society in Europe has been awarded — and it goes to legumes. The EU Prize for Citizen Science, funded by Horizon Europe, is given to projects in which the general public is engaged in scientific research. This year, the Grand Prize, worth about $64,000, was won by INCREASE, a project
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Vision–language AI assistance in human pathology Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Iris Marchal
Pathologists have access to increasingly accurate artificial intelligence (AI) models that can make task-specific or agnostic predictions based on images or genomic data, but a multimodal AI pilot tailored to pathology is still missing. Writing in Nature, Lu et al. introduce PathChat, a generative AI model that can handle both visual and natural language inputs, as a copilot for human pathology. The
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Roche bets on RNA exon editor Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
Roche has struck a partnership with neuro-focused biotech Ascidian Therapeutics over an RNA editing platform. The deal sees the Boston-based Ascidian, a startup with preclinical programs in retinal, neurological and neuromuscular disorders, receive $42 million up front and up to $1.8 billion in milestones and commercial royalties. Under the agreement, Ascidian provides the Swiss pharma with access
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Forum: Lancaster and Pașca Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
In this episode of Forum, Chief Editor Barbara Cheifet speaks with Madeline Lancaster and Sergiu Pașca about organoids — cell cultures derived from stem cells and crafted to replicate a particular organ or certain cell types that make up an organ. These two experts in the field discuss neural organoids specifically, and both how they are being used to study basic biology of the brain and their future
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Counteracting tissue aging through TERT activation Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Iris Marchal
Telomere dysfunction is one of the primary hallmarks of aging, causing molecular and cellular damage that is associated with aging-related diseases. A potential strategy to counteract this aging process is the reactivation of the core catalytic subunit of telomerase, telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), but compounds targeting TERT are lacking owing to a limited understanding of their downstream
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Cryo-EM structure of a prime editor complex in multiple states Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Iris Marchal
Prime editing systems combine a SpCas9 protein with a reverse transcriptase and a prime editing guide RNA (pegRNA) to install a wide variety of genome edits, circumventing the need for DNA double-strand breaks or a DNA donor template. How a prime editor complex initiates and terminates pegRNA-guided reverse transcription remains poorly understood. Now, in Nature, Shuto et al. use cryoelectron microscopy
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Super-resolution microscopy Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
Recent patents relating to systems and methods for super-resolution microscopy.
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From Bench to Podcast: Roman Sarrazin-Gendron Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
On this episode of From Bench to Podcast, our Associate Editor Cláudia Vilhena interviews Roman Sarrazin-Gendron, first author of an absolutely incredible story about … videogames! During this informal chat, Roman and Cláudia talked about the behind-the-scenes of Borderlands Science. They explored the concepts of citizen science, massively multiplayer online video games, and the impact of community
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The cost of drug patent expiration date errors Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 S. Sean Tu, Dinis Cheian, Sarah Gabriele, Benjamin N. Rome, Aaron S. Kesselheim
Errors in the US Patent and Trademark Office’s automated program to calculate patent expiration dates could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in added costs to drug prices.
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People Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
Recent moves of note in and around the biotech and pharma industries.
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NIH Applicant Assistance Program counteracts decades of underrepresentation in SBIR grant awardees Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Katharine L. Korunes, Ethan C. Cissell, Tiger Xie, Eva R. Garland
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Fungal detox: investors eye mycelium bioremediation Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
The digestive prowess of fungi to decontaminate natural environments from polluting plastics, oil spills, toxic waste and even radiation is gaining traction around the globe.
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Five questions with Ryan Flynn Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Michael Francisco
A physician-scientist exploring the mechanisms and physiological relevance of glycoRNAs talks about being useful, the challenges of running a laboratory, and translating foundational knowledge into products that will benefit people.
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A community effort to track commercial single-cell and spatial ’omic technologies and business trends Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-17 Joachim De Jonghe, James W. Opzoomer, Amaia Vilas-Zornoza, Peter Crane, Benedikt S. Nilges, Marco Vicari, Hower Lee, David Lara-Astiaso, Torsten Gross, Jörg Morf, Kim Schneider, Juliana Cudini, Lorenzo Ramos-Mucci, Dylan Mooijman, Katarína Tiklová, Sergio Marco Salas, Christoffer Mattsson Langseth, Nachiket D. Kashikar, Charles E. S. Roberts, Joakim Lundeberg, Mats Nilsson, Alex K. Shalek, Adam P.
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Discovery of a mu-opioid receptor modulator that in combination with morphinan antagonists induces analgesia Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-17
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Direct observation of prion-like propagation of protein misfolding templated by pathogenic mutants Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-15 Krishna Neupane, Abhishek Narayan, Supratik Sen Mojumdar, Gaurav Adhikari, Craig R. Garen, Michael T. Woodside
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G•U wobble base pairs improve site-directed RNA base editing Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-12
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Enzymatic synthesis of RNA oligonucleotides Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-12 Marcel Hollenstein
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Template-independent enzymatic synthesis of RNA oligonucleotides Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-12 Daniel J. Wiegand, Jonathan Rittichier, Ella Meyer, Howon Lee, Nicholas J. Conway, Daniel Ahlstedt, Zeynep Yurtsever, Dominic Rainone, Erkin Kuru, George M. Church
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Precise in vivo RNA base editing with a wobble-enhanced circular CLUSTER guide RNA Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-12 Philipp Reautschnig, Carolin Fruhner, Nicolai Wahn, Charlotte P. Wiegand, Sabrina Kragness, John F. Yung, Daniel T. Hofacker, Jenna Fisk, Michelle Eidelman, Nils Waffenschmidt, Maximilian Feige, Laura S. Pfeiffer, Annika E. Schulz, Yvonne Füll, Erez Y. Levanon, Gail Mandel, Thorsten Stafforst
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The hydrophobicity of the CARD8 N-terminus tunes inflammasome activation Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-10
Mounting evidence indicates that proteotoxic stress is a primary activator of the CARD8 inflammasome, but the complete array of signals that control t…
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The power supply for biological nitrogen fixation Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-10 Günter Fritz, Peter M. H. Kroneck, Julia Steuber
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CAR-Ts sweep into autoimmunity Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-10
Biotechs are equipping CAR-T cells to destroy B cells — not to treat blood cancers, but to take on multiple sclerosis and a raft of autoimmune disorders.
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The physiological and pathological roles of RNA modifications in T cells Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-09 Yu Deng, Jing Zhou, Hua-Bing Li
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The anti-tubercular callyaerins target the Mycobacterium tuberculosis-specific non-essential membrane protein Rv2113 Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 David Podlesainski, Emmanuel T. Adeniyi, Yvonne Gröner, Florian Schulz, Violetta Krisilia, Nidja Rehberg, Tim Richter, Daria Sehr, Huzhuyue Xie, Viktor E. Simons, Anna-Lene Kiffe-Delf, Farnusch Kaschani, Thomas R. Ioerger, Markus Kaiser, Rainer Kalscheuer
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Simultaneous multi-site editing of individual genomes using retron arrays Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-09 Alejandro González-Delgado, Santiago C. Lopez, Matías Rojas-Montero, Chloe B. Fishman, Seth L. Shipman
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An alternative mechanism for recruiting Cas2/3 in a phage-encoded CRISPR–Cas system Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-08
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Distinct phases of cellular signaling revealed by time-resolved protein synthesis Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 Gihoon Lee, Tom W. Muir
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Engineering miniature IscB nickase for robust base editing with broad targeting range Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 Linxiao Han, Yueer Hu, Qiqin Mo, Hao Yang, Feng Gu, Fang Bai, Yadong Sun, Hanhui Ma
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Cas1 mediates the interference stage in a phage-encoded CRISPR–Cas system Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 Laixing Zhang, Hao Wang, Jianwei Zeng, Xueli Cao, Zhengyu Gao, Zihe Liu, Feixue Li, Jiawei Wang, Yi Zhang, Maojun Yang, Yue Feng
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Assessing and engineering the IscB–ωRNA system for programmed genome editing Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 Hao Yan, Xiaoqing Tan, Siyuan Zou, Yihong Sun, Ailong Ke, Weixin Tang
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Breathing new life into in vivo lung editing Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-08
New lipid nanoparticle designs make targeted in vivo lung editing possible in mice and may lead to new treatment options for cystic fibrosis.
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Complete substitution with modified nucleotides in self-amplifying RNA suppresses the interferon response and increases potency Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-08 Joshua E. McGee, Jack R. Kirsch, Devin Kenney, Faith Cerbo, Elizabeth C. Chavez, Ting-Yu Shih, Florian Douam, Wilson W. Wong, Mark W. Grinstaff
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The art of designed coiled-coils for the regulation of mammalian cells Cell Chem. Bio. (IF 6.6) Pub Date : 2024-07-05 Tjaša Plaper, Erik Rihtar, Taja Železnik Ramuta, Vida Forstnerič, Vid Jazbec, Filip Ivanovski, Mojca Benčina, Roman Jerala
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Programmed RNA editing with an evolved bacterial adenosine deaminase Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-05 Hao Yan, Weixin Tang
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Genetically programmed synthetic cells for thermo-responsive protein synthesis and cargo release Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-05 Carolina Monck, Yuval Elani, Francesca Ceroni
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Uncoupling histone modification crosstalk by engineering lysine demethylase LSD1 Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-04 Kwangwoon Lee, Marco Barone, Amanda L. Waterbury, Hanjie Jiang, Eunju Nam, Sarah E. DuBois-Coyne, Samuel D. Whedon, Zhipeng A. Wang, Jonatan Caroli, Katherine Neal, Brian Ibeabuchi, Zuzer Dhoondia, Mitzi I. Kuroda, Brian B. Liau, Samuel Beck, Andrea Mattevi, Philip A. Cole
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A CRISPR activation screen identifies FBXO22 supporting targeted protein degradation Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-04 Ananya A. Basu, Chenlu Zhang, Isabella A. Riha, Assa Magassa, Miguel A. Campos, Alana G. Caldwell, Felicia Ko, Xiaoyu Zhang
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Recruitment of FBXO22 for targeted degradation of NSD2 Nat. Chem. Biol. (IF 12.9) Pub Date : 2024-07-04 David Y. Nie, John R. Tabor, Jianping Li, Maria Kutera, Jonathan St-Germain, Ronan P. Hanley, Esther Wolf, Ethan Paulakonis, Tristan M. G. Kenney, Shili Duan, Suman Shrestha, Dominic D. G. Owens, Matthew E. R. Maitland, Ailing Pon, Magdalena Szewczyk, Anthony Joseph Lamberto, Michael Menes, Fengling Li, Linda Z. Penn, Dalia Barsyte-Lovejoy, Nicholas G. Brown, Anthony M. Barsotti, Andrew W. Stamford
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Evolutionary gambit to defeat drug resistance in cancer Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-04 Andriy Marusyk
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Programming tumor evolution with selection gene drives to proactively combat drug resistance Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-04 Scott M. Leighow, Joshua A. Reynolds, Ivan Sokirniy, Shun Yao, Zeyu Yang, Haider Inam, Dominik Wodarz, Marco Archetti, Justin R. Pritchard
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Pepper catalase: a broad analysis of its modulation during fruit ripening and by nitric oxide Biochem. J. (IF 4.4) Pub Date : 2024-07-03 González-Gordo, Salvador, López-Jaramillo, Javier, Rodríguez-Ruiz, Marta, Taboada, Jorge, Palma, José M., Corpas, Francisco J.
Catalase is a major antioxidant enzyme located in plant peroxisomes that catalyzes the decomposition of H2O2. Based on our previous transcriptomic (RNA-Seq) and proteomic (iTRAQ) data at different stages of pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) fruit ripening and after exposure to nitric oxide (NO) enriched atmosphere, a broad analysis has allowed us to characterize the functioning of this enzyme. Three genes
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Editor’s pick: Unnatural Products Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-03
Each year, Nature Biotechnology highlights companies that have received sizeable early-stage funding in the previous year. Unnatural Products is rewriting the rules for potent oral therapies.
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Editor’s pick: Empress Therapeutics Nat. Biotechnol. (IF 33.1) Pub Date : 2024-07-03
Each year, Nature Biotechnology highlights companies that have received sizeable early-stage funding in the previous year. Empress Therapeutics is reverse-engineering microbial manufacturing.
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Integrating bacterial molecular genetics with chemical biology for renewed antibacterial drug discovery Biochem. J. (IF 4.4) Pub Date : 2024-07-03 Parkhill, Susannah L., Johnson, Eachan O.
The application of dyes to understanding the aetiology of infection inspired antimicrobial chemotherapy and the first wave of antibacterial drugs. The second wave of antibacterial drug discovery was driven by rapid discovery of natural products, now making up 69% of current antibacterial drugs. But now with the most prevalent natural products already discovered, ∼107 new soil-dwelling bacterial species
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Charting the importance of filamin A posttranslational modifications Biochem. J. (IF 4.4) Pub Date : 2024-07-03 Shead, Kyle D., Salyahetdinova, Veneta, Baillie, George S.
Filamin A is an essential protein in the cell cytoskeleton because of its actin binding properties and unique homodimer rod-shaped structure, which organises actin into three-dimensional orthogonal networks imperative to cell motility, spreading and adhesion. Filamin A is subject to extensive posttranslational modification (PTM) which serves to co-ordinate cellular architecture and to modulate its